Avatar: The Era of Kiaree
by krad-avatar-fan
Summary: Avatar Aang and Avatar Korra defeat the Fire Lord and Amon, bringing balance to the world. Finally, there is a time of peace as the next earth bending avatar comes and goes. Now, 200 years later, Kiaree is born a fire bender. She is found by the White Lotus and declared the Avatar. But during her training, the leaders of each nation start to disappear. And the time of peace fades
1. Final Goodbyes

Avatar: The Era Kiaree

Chapter One: Final Goodbyes

Air, water, earth, fire. Many struggles have befallen the world in the past two centuries. Avatar Aang defeated the fire lord and brought harmony to the four nations. Avatar Korra defeated Amon and the Equalists, reuniting benders and non-benders. Finally, there is a time of peace as the next earth bending avatar comes and goes. Now, 200 years after Avatar Aang, Kiaree is born into the fire nation. Her mother is a descendant of Ty Lee. Each generation of Ty Lee's children taught their offspring to chi block, and Kiaree's mother Mai taught her the same. But at a young age, Mai and her husband Korruk discover Kiaree is a fire bender. They don't know how this could be, considering no one on either side of their families have ever been fire benders. The years go by and Mai is pregnant with another child. When Kiaree turns 12, she discovers a startling secret her mother has kept all these years. She cheated on Korruk. And now Mai has realized that Korruk isn't Kiaree's real dad. Kiaree, heartbroken that her mother would do that to her father, runs away. Kiaree knows she needs a place to stay and finds a traveling dance group called the Flying Lemurs. After a little training, Kiaree joins the Flying Lemurs and being to travel with them.

Kiaree continues her life, trying to dance away all her family problems. She tries to keep all her emotions inside, but after two years of smiling and pretending she wasn't angry, Kiaree lets it all out and earth bends, realizing that she may be the Avatar. After contacting the White Lotus, Kiaree is taken back to her family, and there she finds another surprise.

"Kiaree is… is that you?" calls Mai, seeing her missing daughter walk into the yard.

"Um, yeah, I guess. Hi mom," Kiaree mutters, staring at the floor. Mai smiles and rushes to hug Kiaree. They embrace for a moment, then Kiaree pulls away.

"Korruk!" Mai yells. "Korruk, come quickly! Kiaree!" At the sound of his daughter's name, Korruk runs into the kitchen from his study. They stare at each other for a minute, and then Kiaree jumps into her dad's arms.

"My baby girl," Korruk mutters into Kiaree's hair.

"Dad, I'm 14. I'm not a baby." Korruk starts to cry, still wrapping Kiaree in his arms, realizing how much of her life they missed. Mai comes over and joins the hug, and for a minute they sit on the floor, wrapped in each other's arms. Then, a small child waddles into the kitchen.

Kiaree's mother gets up and walks over to the little boy and picks him up. "Kiaree," Mai says. "This is Teo." He stares at Kiaree with bright blue eyes, just like Korruk's. When Kiaree asked Koruk why he blue eyes, he had told her that his mother, her grandma, was from the Northern Water Tribe. Kiaree had always had a sort of brownish yellow eye color that neither of her parents had. Korruk had always wondered why, but Kiaree knew… and so did her mother.

Teo brushes his black hair out of his eyes and says, "Hi, what's your name?" in a high pitched baby voice.

"I'm… I'm Kiaree, and apparently I'm your sister." Mai bring Teo over to Kiaree and hands him to her.

"He's two years old," Koruk says. Mai walks over and starts smoothing out Kiaree's long brown hair.

"If you remember," Mai starts, "when you left, I was preg…"

"I remember," Kiaree interrupts, not wanting to talk about when she left. There is a quick knock on the door and Kiaree is reminded of why she came back. Korruk answers the door and two men, each dressed in different red robes, greet him.

"Hello," the shorter of the two says. "I am Jeong, and this is Kuzon. I am part of the White Lotus." Mai takes Teo into the other room because he has started to cry and the men go outside to talk.

"_I wonder how my parents will react when they find out I'm the avatar," _Kiaree thinks. She sits on a chair and puts her chin in her hands, waiting to see her father's reaction. After about 5 minutes, Korruk runs into the room. He looks at his daughter with a new appreciation.

Kiaree stands up and says, "Guess what daddy? I'm the Avatar."

Kiaree stays with her parents and soon begins her Avatar training as a fire bender. Kuzon is her fire bending master and Jeong, being a member of the White Lotus, stays in the fire nation to protect the new avatar. After a year of training, Kiaree masters fire bending. The next element for her to learn is earth bending, because she has done it once before. The White Lotus have business to attend to in Republic City, so for protection Kiaree is being sent to Kyoshi Island to begin her training.

"I can't believe your leaving again," Korruk sighs, bringing Kiaree's bag to the door. "We just got you back."

"I know, I'm sorry," Kiaree says to the floor. She always feels guilty about leaving her father. "But I have duties as the Avatar, and I need to learn earth bending."

Korruk nods, then walks outside to greet Kuzon, who pulls up in his Sato Mobile. Mai comes in carrying Teo, who turned three a few days before.

"There's my boy!" Kiaree says, taking Teo and tossing him above her head.

"Careful…" Mai says, putting her arm out as if to catch him is he falls.

"Again!" cries Teo, but Kiaree sets him down on his feet.

"Sorry little man, mommy doesn't like it," Kiaree smirks. Teo turns around and sticks his tongue out at Mai, then runs off.

"Do you really have to turn both my kids against me?" Mai asks. Kiaree looks at the floor and they stand there for an awkward moment until Kuzon and Korruk come in.

"I'm glad you came to say bye," Kiaree says, bowing to her master.

"That's not all I came to do," Kuzon says, taking Kiaree out into the yard and setting her in front of a box covered by a blanket.

"Go ahead," Korruk urges. "See what's inside." Kiaree cautiously approaches the box, taking notice on how intricate the design on the blanket is. On the blanket there's a decorative sun, highlighted by red and gold threads, woven into a pattern. Kiaree slowly raises the blanket, then throws it off when she see what's inside.

"Dragon!" Teo shouts, running outside to Korruk. Inside the cage, a baby dragon squirms, trying to find a position where its tail isn't so close to his face. Kiaree turns around to face Kuzon, a huge smile on her face.

"Yes, he's for you," Kuzon laughs.

"I thought there were only nine dragons in the world," Mai says, astonished.

"There are," Kuzon says. "Originally, Ran and Shaw were the last remaining dragons in the world. But like every other animal, they repopulated and three dragons were hatched. Those three each had three eggs of their own, and this little guy is one of those. Obviously Ran and Shaw aren't alive anymore. That was 200 years ago."

"How did you get him?" Kiaree asks, turning back to the dragon. He is mostly red, with has two purple lines down his back and the top of his head and snout are yellow.

"We stopped by the Sun Warriors and told them we found a new Avatar. You would obviously like a traveling companion and the Sun Warriors were generous enough to give us a dragon egg. He hatched about a month ago, but he's small. Probably won't get nearly as big as Ran or Shaw, but still a good-sized dragon."

Kiaree opens the cage and drapes the dragon across her arms. He's about two feet long.

"What's his name?" Teo asks. Kiaree looks at Kuzon questioningly. "The Sun Warriors called him Kisu."

Kiaree lets Kisu fly around the yard, under the watchful eye of Kuzon and Korruk, while Teo chases him. Kiaree goes back inside to look around her house one more time. "Next time I see this place again, I'll be a fully realized Avatar," Kiaree thinks out loud.

"Avatar Kiaree, wow. It's going to take some getting used to," Mai says, and Kiaree spins around to face her. She thought her mom would be keeping Teo away from the dragon by now.

"Yah, I know," Kiaree says. "For me too." Kiaree never forgave her mom, and ever since she got back, they haven't talked about her leaving. Her mom sniffles back a tear.

"I'm just going to really miss you," she says, and Kiaree lets Mai hug her.

"I know mom, but don't worry. Jeong and the rest of the White Lotus are going to take care of me." Mai freezes in Kiaree's arms, then pulls away.

"Who?" she asks, with an out of place, fake smile on her face.

"Um, Master Jeong? He's a fire bender in the White Lotus. He's been making sure nothing happens to me while I was training. Not like anything would. This town is pretty safe."

"You said Jeong? He's going to be traveling with you?" Mai asks, her fake smile now gone.

"Yah, probably. Why? What's wrong?"

Kiaree's mom seems to snap out of it, then says, "Oh, I just haven't met him! That's all. I didn't feel safe about you traveling with someone we haven't met."

"Dad met him. He came to our house the day…" Kiaree starts, and then trails off.

"The Day you came back," Mai finishes, giving Kiaree another quick hug. "I _am _really glad you finally came home."

"I know," Kiaree says. "Me too."

After saying her final goodbyes, Kiaree climbs into Kuzon's Sato Mobile, her bag in the trunk and Kisu on her lap.

"This is it, Kisu," she says. "Avatar Kiaree is on her way."

**HEY thanks for reading! IK this chapter isn't very good, but the next one will be better, trust me. PLEASE REVIEW! this is my first fanfiction story so i might not be any good. review and tell me what u think! thanks! :)**


	2. Kyoshi Island

Chapter 2:Kyoshi Island

After two days of traveling, Kiaree is relieved to see Kyoshi Island appear on the horizon. Once she gets closer to land, Kiaree can make out the elephant koi gliding along next to the base of the boat. She doesn't know much about Kyoshi Island, only that, centuries ago, Avatar Aang visited here and road the Unagi. Kiaree involuntarily scans the water in search of the carnivorous eel. Once docked on the shore, Kiaree can make out the statue of Kyoshi marking the entrance to the town. She lets Kisu fly around the bushes in search of bugs or mice to snack on.

"Welcome to Kyoshi Island!" Jeong exclaims, spreading his arms in front of him. "This will be your home for the time being."

"Thank you," Kiaree says, looking up. White, fluffy clouds dot the sky and it reminds her of home. Teo loved laying out in the yard with her and looking at the clouds. It makes her miss her family.

"Shall we proceed?" Jeong asks, snapping her back to the present. Kiaree nods, whistling for Kisu. He flies through the undergrowth, a mouse-tail hanging limp out of his mouth. The three head down a path leading to the village, a boat worker carrying her bag behind them. Once in the village, Kiaree experiences the sheer size of Kyoshi's statue. While walking further into the village, Kiaree looks back at it, and notices that it looks like the statue is winking at her. She shakes it off, then turns to meet the crowd of people that have come to welcome her. They cheer, and she waves them a hello. Jeong rushes her past the crowd and into a Dojo at the end of the town. There, she sees eight women dressed in armored, green kimonos, medal headdresses, and white-faced makeup. One woman, who seemed in charge, steps forward. She seems young, probably in her twenties.

"Hello," she says, bowing. "I'm Shao, and these are the Kyoshi Warriors. We welcome you to Kyoshi Island." Kiaree bows back.

"Thank you," Kiaree says.

"Well now," Jeong says, clearing his throat. "I have business to attend to, so I'll be on my way. Kiaree, if there is anything you need, the Kyoshi warriors are here to help you. If you need to reach me, you can give me a ring on the telephone and…"

"We don't have telephones here," Shao says. Jeong looks confused. "We try to keep Kyoshi Island as 'out dated' as possible. But if Kiaree wants to reach you, we adapted a sort of messenger hawk from the fire nation."

"All right, then 'messenger hawk' me," he says, and then strides out of the dojo. The other Kyoshi Warriors disperse around the training dojo, but Shao calls one back over.

"Meg," she says, "your training is dismissed for the day. Will you show the avatar to her room?"

"Ok, follow me," the girl says, and the two walk out of the dojo.

"Hi," she says. "I'm Meg."

"Kiaree," Kiaree says. "So, I'm guessing you're a Kyoshi warrior?"

"Almost. I'm still in training." She takes Kiaree to one of the many wooden huts lining the village. "This is where you will be staying. My house is right next door!" Kiaree's room is on the main street, with two rows of houses behind it and in front. It is one of the houses she passed with Jeong, and the dojo is just a few buildings down. It has the same, traditional green roof and wooden shingles as the other buildings, but has a neater, less run down look to it.

"Omg! Is this your dragon?" Meg shrieks, stroking Kisu, who is resting on Kiaree's shoulders.

"Yah," Kiaree laughs. "His name is Kisu."

"I didn't even know dragons were allowed as pets, you know, because of how little of them there are," Meg says, then leans in closer to Kiaree. "So did you, like, steal him?" she whispers, causing Kiaree to laugh.

"No, the Sun Warriors gave him to me!" Kiaree laughs. She is starting to like Meg.

"Ok," Meg laughs, "just wondering. Well, I'm going to go back to train. Feel free to come watch any time." Meg start to leave then turns and shouts, "Oh! I almost forgot. Shao asked me to remind you that tomorrow your earth bending master is arriving and your training starts as soon as he gets here!" With that, Meg runs into the dojo. Kiaree sighs and turns back to her new home.

"_This is all going by so fast," _Kiaree thinks_. _Kisu flies into the house in front of her and Kiaree strides in after him.

The next day, Master Haru arrives on Kyoshi Island. He is to be Kiaree's earth bending teacher. As soon as he settles in, the two head to a bolder field behind the Kyoshi dojo to start training. They spend all day practicing forms and the basics of earth bending, yet, by the end of the day, Kiaree can barley budge a bolder. She is disappointed, but Master Haru assures her that in time, it will come to her. She just has to be patient.

"So, you know how to chi block?" Meg asks a week later. They are sitting at a café on one of the new streets on the island. It's a place they like to hang out at after both of their training.

"Yah, my mom taught me, but she wasn't very good," Kiaree laughs. "She doesn't like to fight."

"Could you show me?" Meg asks.

"Sure. Do you have a practice dummy or something I could show you on?"

"I don't think so," Meg thinks. "Just chi block on me!"

"No way."

"Please!"

"I'm not just going to let you stand there while I chi block you!" Kiaree exclaims. _"Though it would be fun,"_ Kiaree thinks to herself, then smirks. "How about we have a little practice fight? Kyoshi Island Agni Kai!" Kiaree jokes.

"Ok!" Meg says, grabbing Kiaree and running around to the back of the dojo.

"Fine," Kiaree says. "Here are the rules. No bending, for me, and no fans, for you. It'll just be hand to hand. Ok?"

"Gotcha," Meg says, then bows to Kiaree. Kiaree bows back, then they take a stance and circle each other. The whole thing is too funny for Kiaree not to laugh, but Meg keeps a serious expression. Being a Kyoshi Warrior, she is trained in hand to hand combat. The two go at it for a bit and its obvious Meg has the upper hand. Kiaree sends a series of quick jabs to Meg's left arm and it goes limp.

"That's so cool!" Meg says, poking at her arm.

"You promise I didn't hurt you?" Kiaree asks, concerned.

"Yah, I'm fine, but lets keep going!"

"If you says so," Kiaree says. Meg rubs her arm back to life and continues. At one point, Meg dives behind the boulders and Kiaree can't find her. Kiaree stays in her stance and turns, looking for her. Meg runs at her from behind a rock and Kiaree can feel her through the ground. She panics and, not knowing her own strength, kicks her right heel up. The next step Meg takes sends her flying forward in the air. Kiaree stares at her flying friend until Meg does a somersault on the ground and lands on her feet, but then falls backwards. She just stares at Kiaree.

"What… what happened?" Kiaree asks, stunned.

"You made me fall on my butt. And you cheated!" Meg exclaims. "That's what happened."

"…Cheated?"

"You earth bended." Kiaree still can't believe this. She looks where Meg was standing and there is a column of earth where there hadn't been before.

"You mean… I did that?" Kiaree exclaims, pointing at the earth behind her.

"Yah, which means I win!" Meg jumps up. "Oh, and congrats on earth bending," she smirks. It finally sinks in that she earth bended, and a huge smile spreads across Kiaree's face. Then she remembers that she flung Meg 20ft in the air and rushes to her friend.

"Are you ok? Did I hurt you?" Kiaree asks, scanning Meg for cuts or bruises.

"Nah, I'm fine. But my arm still feels weird," Meg says, rubbing her arm. The two are laughing when Master Haru comes behind the dojo.

"Glad to see you're here early," he says, looking questioningly at the column of earth. "Who did that?" Kiaree slowly raises her hand.

"Wow, I'm impressed."

"I gotta go. Kyoshi Warrior training and stuff," Meg says, running into the dojo.

"See ya," Kiaree calls, then turns to face her master.

"So you did that," Master Haru stated. "How?"

"I'm not sure," Kiaree says. "Meg and I were having a little Kyoshi Island Agni Kai, just for fun, and she sneak attacked me. I panicked and accidently earth bended? I don't know…"

"That might mean you're starting to get the hang of earth bending. But for now, lets stick with rocks, not rock columns," Haru instructs and Kiaree laughs.

"Ok," she agrees. "Let's start training."

After two months of being on Kyoshi Island, The White Lotus message Kiaree that they will be coming soon. Their duties in Republic City took longer than expected and they will be coming soon to take her to Ba Sing Se. Not long after receiving the letter, the White Lotus arrive on Kyoshi Island. They inform Kiaree that they will depart in one day, to give her time to pack and say goodbye. Kiaree immediately goes to tell Meg, realizing that she will have to leave her best friend.

"No!" Meg exclaims. "You can't leave! You're the only real friend I have here!"

"You still have the rest of the Kyoshi Warriors. And I have Kisu. At least we wont be lonely," Kiaree states. "But, I know, I'm going to miss you too." The two friends hug.

"Well, we still have one day, so let's make it fun!" Meg says.

"Um," Kiaree starts. "Well, actually, Haru scheduled earth bending training for today. I tried to get out of it, but you know how he is."

"But… its out last day together," Meg pouts. "And not only that, its your birthday! You're fifteen!"

Kiaree laughs. "You're right," she says. "Which means I'm officially a year older than you."

"Whatever. We can both skip our training today and cause some trouble," Meg says mischievously.

"Isn't the avatar supposed to save the world from trouble, not cause it?" Kiaree laughs.

"Guess you better save the world from me then," Meg says, running off.

"Ok, fine," Kiaree yells, running after her. "I'll skip training. Now let's go have some fun."

Meg and Kiaree spend the day together, and that night Kiaree receives a letter from her father.

_ My dearest Kiaree,_

_ Happy Birthday, my love. I've missed you so much. Now that you're gone, Teo won't stop sitting in your room asking where you've gone. I can tell he misses you as much as I do. Your mother sends you her best wishes, though she isn't able to write at this time. She is busy with Teo. You know how she babies him. I hope your avatar training is going well. The White Lotus informed us that you will be headed to Ba Sing Se soon. I know how much you've wanted to see a big city and I am excited for you. I miss and love you dearly. _

_ Love,_

_ Your Father Korruk_

Kiaree gets teary from reading her father's letter.

_"Figures Mom wouldn't 'have time' to write to me," _Kiaree thinks_. _She lies down on her cot and presses the letter to her chest. Kisu flies to her and snuggles around her head.

"Hey there, buddy," Kiaree murmurs, stroking Kisu. After the long day, Kiaree drifts to sleep. But when she wakes, Kiaree isn't in her house anymore. She is standing at the front of Kyoshi Island, near the statue. Smoke starts to billow around her and Kiaree realizes that she might to be fully awake yet.

"Hello?" Kiaree calls out, hearing noises come from in front of her. Kyoshi's statue starts to shimmer, and something flies from it.

"Hello," an unfamiliar voice says. Kiaree spins around and standing behind her is a woman. "I'm Avatar Kyoshi."

This takes a minute to sinks in. "How… how am I talking to you?" Kiaree asks, astonished.

"I am a part of you. Though I was the avatar many centuries ago, I am still within you, as are all past avatars."

"Am I dreaming?" Kiaree asks, pinching herself.

"Most likely," Kyoshi says. "I came because I can tell you are in need of advice."

"I am?" Kiaree asks. "I didn't know I was in trouble."

"Not yet," Kyoshi says. "But in the future, trouble may befall you. It all depends on the choices you make and how you shape your destiny."

"So, what's the advice?"

"I came to tell you to know who your friends and enemies are. Sometimes, it may be hard to tell one from the other. Know who you can and can't trust Kiaree, or people may end up betraying you."

"Who are you talking about?" Kiaree asks, but Kyoshi has disappeared. "Wait! I have more questions!" Kiaree sits up in her cot and yells "Kyoshi!" but she has woken up. She swings her legs over the side of the bed, her hand on her forehead.

"And I though this was going to be easy," she murmurs. "Guess not."

The next day, Jeong comes to her door bright and early. Kiaree is already up. She couldn't sleep after her weird dream.

"Today's the big day, Avatar!" he calls through the threshold.

"I know," Kiaree grumbles, brining her bag to the door. Jeong takes her bag and hands it to a boat worker behind him.

"Let's head to the ship," Jeong says.

"Wait!" Kiaree says, grabbing his sleeve. "Can I say goodbye to my friend one last time?"

Jeong sighs. "Ok, but hurry up. The boat leaves in ten minutes. Kiaree bows a thank you to him and runs next door to Meg's house.

"Meg?" Kiaree calls, waking the sleeping girl up.

"Kiaree? Are you leaving now?" Meg asks groggily, sitting up on her cot.

"Yah, I am. But I couldn't leave without saying goodbye."

Meg sighs, standing up. "Guess this is it then. I'm really going to miss you." Meg hugs Kiaree.

"Maybe you don't have to," Kiaree says, pulling away.

"What do you mean?" Meg asks.

"What if you came with me?" Kiaree exclaims, jumping up and down. "You've almost finished your Kyoshi Warrior training anyway, and who knows how lonely I might get! Kisu isn't a very good listener. And... I'm the avatar. If I tell the White Lotus I want you to come along, it's not like they're going to say no."

Meg thinks for a minute. "It does make sense. Ok, let's do it! I'll go talk to the Kyoshi Warriors and meet you at the boat." The two run out with big smiles on their faces. Kiaree whistles for Kisu and he flies to her side. Once at the boat, Jeong asks if she is ready to leave.

"Almost," Kiaree says, looking back at the village. She sees Meg run out of the dojo and over to the boats. "Ok, now we're ready."

Meg bows to Jeong.

"What's she doing here?" Jeong asks.

"Meg is coming with us," Kiaree says and the two friends stride on the boat. Jeong shakes his head and follows the girls. Master Haru is already on board and gives Kiaree a mad look for skipping training. She shys away from him.

"All Aboard!" calls the captain. "Next stop, the Earth Kingdom!"


	3. Welcome to The City of Secrets

Chapter 3:Welcome to The City of Secrets

After taking a short boat ride from Kyoshi Island to Chin Village, to pick up extra supplies, the avatar starts a two-day boat ride around the vast earth kingdom and into Chameleon Bay. From there they follow up a river leading striaght to E.K. Ferry Port. After exiting the port, which is conveniently right outside Ba Sing Se, they take a train to the mighty outer wall, stopping only to get permission to enter the city by the wall's guards. Once inside the city, Kiaree, Meg, Kisu, Jeong, Haru, and an earth bending member of the White Lotus, named Shang, bored a monorail that takes them through the Lower Ring, Agrarian Zone, Middle Ring, and Upper Ring of Ba Sing Se. Kiaree barely gets a glance at the Earth King Chan's palace as they wiz by and into the monorail station. From there, Jeong dismisses himself to meet with the Earth King and leaves them in Haru and Shang's care. The two men take them to a house in the Upper Ring, near the King's palace, and then leave them to unpack. Haru informs Kiaree that there will be _mandatory _earth bending training tomorrow, then leaves.

"Wow!" Meg exclaims, standing in the middle of their new house. "This is even bigger than the Kyoshi Warrior dojo!"

"I don't think I've been in a house this nice before," Kiaree agrees, taking Kisu out of his "required" traveling cage. He flies up to the ceiling, then out the back window. _"I need to get a bigger cage,"_ Kiaree thinks.

"Aren't you afraid he's going to fly away?" Meg asks, walking to the window.

"No, not really. He hasn't flown away before," Kiaree replies, also looking out the window. Kisu is flying around a small, private garden provided with the house. "I don't think he likes to be alone, or like, far from people. I'm not sure. I've never had a dragon before." Kiaree smirks and they both leave the window. The girls start to unpack their belongings and settle in.

"How long do you think we're going to be in Ba Sing Se?" Meg asks, hanging up her Kyoshi warriors uniform.

"Probably until I master earth bending, or maybe until the White Lotus need to leave again. If you haven't noticed, they like to keep someone around 'protecting' me constantly. It's like they think I can't take care of myself."

"Yah, I noticed," Meg says. "Why is Jeong here anyway? Shouldn't he go back to the fire nation or back to the White Lotus or something, now that Haru and Shang are with you?"

"That's what I was thinking. I'm not sure where they meet or anything," Kiaree sighs. "I'm supposed to be the avatar, but I feel like I barely know the world I'm supposed to be protecting."

"Well, that's what your avatar training should help you with, right? When you travel to learn the different styles of bending, you'll get to see the world," Meg states.

"You too," Kiaree reminds her and Meg smiles.

"Well," Meg starts, satisfied with her unpacking job, "now that that's done, let's go explore Ba Sing Se!"

After exploring and shopping, with a limited money supply provided by the White Lotus, Haru knocking angrily at their door awakens the girls the next day.

Before Kiaree can fully open the door, Haru says, "You are late to training."

"Sorry," Kiaree says, rubbing her still tired eyes. "We over slept. It won't happen again, I prom…"

"You're right it wont," Haru interrupts, then turns to leave. He sighs and says, "Be at the palace in thirty minutes. Do not be late this time." Kiaree closes the door and rushes to get ready.

"Who was that," Meg murmurs, still half asleep.

"Haru. We overslept."

"You mean_ you_ overslept," Meg smiles. "I don't have to be anywhere."

"Good," Kiaree says, pulling on traditional earth kingdom clothing as Meg starts to fall back asleep. "Then you're free to watch Kisu." The dragon lifts his head from Kiaree's bed at the sound of his name.

"Wait, what?" Meg says tiredly.

"Thanks!" Kiaree calls. She slams the door behind her, causing both Kisu and Meg to jump.

_"Now, how do I get to the palace?"_ Kiaree thinks. She walks down a street, then another, and another. _"I think I'm going the right direction."_

After walking some more, Kiaree realizes that she has no idea where she is going when she reaches the wall that separates the Upper Ring and Middle Ring.

"Alright, I'm very lost," Kiaree says out loud.

"Maybe I cam help you find your way," a voice says from behind her. She spins around and faces a middle-aged man. His hair is dirty and his face unshaven, but other than that, he looks like any other Ba Sing Se citizen, dressed in everyday clothes. "If you're lost, I can help you. I know this city inside out."

"Um, yeah sure. I'm headed to the Earth King," Kiaree says warily.

"Oh, the palace isn't far from here! Follow me," the man says and starts walking down a street nearby. He turns to see if Kiaree is following and waves her forward. Cautiously, she follows.

"What's your name?" Kiaree asks, trying to make conversation.

He waits a moment, then says, "Chin." He leads her down a few more streets in the opposite direction Kiaree thought the palace was in. When they enter an ally with a dead end, Kiaree freezes.

"This isn't the way to the palace," she says.

"Hmmm," Chin says, scratching his unshaved face. "I seem to have gotten lost. Let me see if any of my buddies can help us." With that, two men walk up behind Kiaree, trapping her in the ally. A woman jumps off a building and lands next to Chin. Now she is completely surrounded, by walls and people.

"Everyone, this young lady is headed to the Earth King's palace," Chin says. "Think we can help her out?"

"That place isn't anywhere near here," a man behind Kiaree says. "Too bad. Guess she will have to hang with us for a while."

"Stay away from me," Kiaree says shakily, getting into a fighting stance. The others do the same.

"Give us whatever money you have and we won't hurt you too badly," the woman says in a nastily voice.

"I said, stay away from me!" Kiaree says and shoots fire at her. The woman easily dodges it and the four attack Kiaree. They each send a hunk of earth at her, which she jumps above and fire bends as much as she can at once. The man that spoke before grabs her from behind, but she flips over him and chi blocks him to the ground. Kiaree then lunges at Chin, but is hit by wall of earth. The woman sinks Kiaree into the ground so that only her shoulders and above are out of the ground. The three that remain standing walk to her and laugh at their success.

"The little girl thought she take all of us," Chin laughs, then bends down and takes Kiaree's face in his hand. "I don't think I caught your name sugar." His breath smells of alcohol and Kiaree starts to panic. Not really knowing what she is doing, Kiaree twists herself completely into the ground, and then shoots herself into the sky with earth bending. When she lands on the ground, Kiaree feels completely out of control of her powers and unintentionally goes into the avatar state, for the first time.

She turns to Chin's stunned face and says, "My name is Avatar Kiaree," in her powerful avatar voice, and punches the ground below her. A wave of earth throws all four of the muggers into the air and they smash into the walls around them. Kiaree feels overwhelmed with power and lifts herself high above the buildings on a pillar of earth. Still in the avatar state, she shoots fire from her fist as high in the sky as she can manage, catching the attention almost everyone on the streets of the Upper Ring. But, no longer in danger, Kiaree goes out of the avatar state, and the earth below her feet crumbles. Extremely weakened from the avatar state, she starts to fall back towards the ground. When she reaches the ground, Kiaree hits the now uneven street with a thud, and is knocked unconscious.

When Kiaree awakes, she's sitting on the floor of a room, her vision is blurred, and she can make out five people sitting same as her in a half circle, with Kiaree in the center, facing them. At first, she thinks they are the muggers, and her breathing quickens as she gets frightened. But soon her vision focuses and she sees that they are about as far from muggers as one can get. She is sitting in a room completely covered in stone, with no doors or windows. And sitting in front of her, are the past five Avatars.

"She's awake," Avatar Kyoshi says. She is one of the three avatars here that Kiaree recognizes. Along side her is a fire bender, Avatar Aang, a water bender, and Avatar Tunsun, the earth bending avatar before her.

"Hello, I am Avatar Roku," the fire bender says.

"Hey, I thought I was going to talk to her first," Avatar Tunsun complains.

The water bender punches him in the arm and says, "Big deal. It doesn't matter."

"Korra," Aang says. "You're an adult… and an Avatar. Don't you think you can make a good impression?"

"Yes," Roku agrees. "Be a role model."

"You all are scarring Kiaree," Avatar Kyoshi says and they all turn to look at her eyes, huge with fright.

"I must be hallucinating," Kiaree murmurs, getting up and walking around the room. The avatars watch as she goes to each wall and pats it. The stonewall feels solid against her hand and she slowly sinks down in a corner. "What… what happened? What's going on? Am I dead? How do I get out of here?" Kiaree asks, more to herself than anyone else.

"Come sit back down. We'll explain," Tunsun says and Kiaree obeys. She sits the way all the other avatars are sitting, with their legs crossed in a meditation pose.

"That was some fall you had," Avatar Korra says. Kiaree rubs her head, expecting to feel a bump where she hit it, but there isn't one.

"What happened to me in that ally?"

"Kiaree, have you heard of the avatar state?" Avatar Roku says. Kiaree shakes her head no.

"When an avatar is in danger, their avatar abilities usually force them into what's called the 'avatar state'," he continues.

"This is when you are at your most powerful. Before you learn to master it, you have little control over your powers when you enter the avatar state," Avatar Aang finishes. "You were in danger, so your avatar instinct was to do so."

"It felt so weird," Kiaree murmurs. "I felt so strong, like no one could beat me."

"Once you master the avatar state," Avatar Korra starts, "you will be able to willingly go in and out of it. And be able to control your powers once you're in the avatar state."

"Didn't I earth bend? How did I do that?" Kiaree asks, remembering punching the ground.

"As we said, you are at your most powerful. You can do things you didn't dream of doing without it," Avatar Tunsun says.

"Ok," Kiaree says, thinking. "So I was attacked and I went into the avatar state. I fell from something… and now I'm here. Where is here?"

"It's hard to explain," Avatar Korra says.

"Let's say you're in a sort of 'spirit limbo.' You're not in the spirit world, but also not in your world. Somewhere in between," Avatar Roku explains.

"That's why we are all able to communicate with you easily," Avatar Aang says.

"Why are you all communicating with me?" Kiaree asks.

"You had many unanswered questions," Avatar Tunsun replies.

"But now it's time for you to return to your world," Avatar Kyoshi states, who hasn't said much.

"How?"

"Meditate on it. Will yourself back to your body," Avatar Aang advises. Kiaree nods.

"And remember my advice, Kiaree. Know who you can trust," Avatar Kyoshi says, and suddenly, the stonewall behind the avatars crumbles, revealing thousands of other past avatars.

"We are all a part of you," Avatar Korra says, in a distant voice. A gust of wind causes all the avatars to disappear, leaving Kiaree facing a vast valley of smoke. She takes a deep breath, and closes her eyes. Kiaree focuses on her breathing and tries to connect it back to her real body. She feels a slight pulling sensation and when she opens her eyes, she is in another unfamiliar room.

She is staring up at a white ceiling. On the wall in front of her, there are a few medicine cabinets with the water tribe insignia carved into the front. Kiaree tries to sit up, but is restrained by stiff, white sheets. She realizes that she is on a hospital bed.

"Kiaree? You're awake?" She hears Meg ask. Kiaree pulls the sheets out from under the bed enough for her to pull her arms out and sit up. Kiaree is dizzy for a minute, but it fades. Meg and Shang are sitting in plastic chairs on the wall to her right. Kisu is sitting on Meg's lap. When he sees that Kiaree's awake, Kisu flies over and lies on the bed with Kiaree. He is already longer than she is.

"Where am I now?" Kiaree asks, tired of feeling out of place.

"You're at one of the few water tribe hospitals in Ba Sing Se. The metal bending officers found you knocked out in an ally with four other people. What happened?" Meg asks, concerned for her friends.

"Some thugs tried to mug me," Kiaree says. She giggles, but it hurts her side and her head. She reaches up and feels a bandage wrapped around a huge lump on her head.

"Then why were you unconscious?" Shang asks.

Kiaree pauses, then replies, "I went into the avatar state." Both Shang and Meg look shocked

"I've heard a little about the avatar state from the Kyoshi Warriors. And you thought you weren't fit to be the avatar," Meg smirks. Kiaree smiles and pets Kisu's head.

"The metal bending officers came because they got calls of a crazed, fire bending earth bender terrorizing the city," Shang scolds. "You can imagine how confused they were."

"Yah, I might have gone a little crazy with it," Kiaree admits.

"A healer will be in soon. They wanted to wait until you were awake to do any heavy duty healing. You should be out of here by the end of the day," Shang informs Kiaree.

"I expected Jeong and maybe even Haru to be here. He must be mad that I missed another practice."

"Well, actually," Shang starts, "they have… other things to deal with at the moment."

"What other things?" Kiaree asks, suspicious now. Meg looks at the floor.

"Some thing has come up at the palace. You see, well," Shang sighs. "The Earth King Chan has been kidnapped."


	4. Missing

Chapter 4: Missing

As promised, Kiaree is released later that day. After begging Shang, who has business to attend to in the middle ring, she is given directions to the palace. Kiaree, Meg, and Kisu head there immediately. It's all of their first times seeing the huge palace. As they walked closer, two giant walls encased them, leaving only the options of facing the palace or walking out the way they came. The giant building is brown and green, with gold hinted in everywhere possible. It is one of the few places in Ba Sing Se, including the walls, that has been left unchanged for hundreds of years. Kisu was forced to stay outside by the palace guards, so he waited patiently by the front entrance. After getting lost a few times, the two finally find a door to the hallway leading to the king's bedchamber.

"Stop right there," a guard says as Kiaree begins to open the door to the hallway. "No one enters. Dai Lee's orders," he says, placing himself between the girls and the door.

"But I'm an exception," Kiaree says, again trying to walk past. The man puts him arm out to stop them. It is bigger than her thigh.

"No one enters," he repeats. Kiaree looks up at his face. He is two heads taller than her, and kind of intimidating.

"Look," she says, trying to sound nice, "I'm the avatar. And the White Lotus are in there. I need to speak with them." She waits for a response, but doesn't get one. "If you wont let me in, can't you ask maybe Jeong to come out?" Kiaree asks, fed up.

"Sorry miss, but you need to leave now."

"Just let me in!" Kiaree grunts in a feeble attempt to earth bend the guard out of the way. He easily redirects it to the other side of the room, as if her attempt was nothing.

"Do you know who you're talking to?" Meg exclaims in her occasionally annoying, yet intimidating high voice. The guard sighs and glares at Meg. "If you don't listen to her, you're gonna get your butt kicked AVATAR STYLE!"

At this, the guard throws his head back in laughter, making Meg madder. In this short moment of distraction, Kiaree takes advantage and knocks the big guard to his feet with earth bending. He makes a surprised grunt as he hits the floor and Kiaree jumps over him. She opens the door to the short hallway in time to see Jeong, Master Haru, and a woman talking. Before she can say anything, the guard is up on his feet and earth bends the floor to pull her back out of the hallway and closes the doors in front of her. In the same instant, the doors are reopened and Kiaree is earth bended back into the hallway she was pulled from.

The guard looks surprised until Haru says, "It's fine Ho Tu. She is welcome." The guard grumbles as Meg strides in after Kiaree, sticking her tongue out as she passes Ho Tun. Kiaree, slightly dizzy from being yanked back and forth, makes her way to her earth bending teacher.

"Sorry I missed training… again," she apologizes.

"You had a good reason this time," Haru says. He introduces Kiaree to Ming, one of the few non bending members of the White Lotus. The five walk together into the king's bedchambers and the first thing Kiaree notices is his bed. She feels it inappropriate to see the place where the mighty king sleeps, but she can't find it in her to look away. The way the sheets were bunched at the end of the bed, it looked as if he had gotten up willingly out of his bed at some point in the night. There is no sign of struggle anywhere in the room. It's as if he just got up and walked out with his kidnapper.

"How do they know he was kidnapped?" Kiaree asks, scanning the room for a sign. Police and investigators, along with the Dai Lee, are searching the room for clues and leads.

"They told us that a palace Sato Mobile was missing and in the place of the missing vehicle was the king's royal robe. After further investigation, the officers reasoned that he was lead from his room, or may even have walked out to get fresh air, and was taken, dressed in peasant clothes, and driven away in a stolen car," Jeong reports, staring at his folded hands the whole time. Master Haru unexpectedly leaves the room and Kiaree turns to Meg.

"Go find Kisu and I'll meet you outside, ok?"

"Yah sure," Meg says obediently, walking out towards the front entrance. _"It's so great to have a friend like Meg,"_ Kiaree thinks before following her earth bending teacher out of the room. She finds him in a sitting room, a hallway down from King Chan's chamber.

"Master Haru?" Kiaree asks, rounding a corner and facing her teacher in a very green room. There is a green carpet, green curtains, green walls embroidered with a gold color, and the couches are made of a green velvet. This must be the king's sitting room. It's obvious that his favorite color was green.

"So you followed me, did you?" Haru says, standing up from a chair and straitening his earth kingdom robes. Kiaree studies his face. His aged eyes have sadness to them, no matter how hard he tried to hide it.

"Um, are you ok?" she asks, feeling awkward. She rubs the back of her head and thinks, _"Maybe I shouldn't have come."_

Haru sighs. "I don't think you no this, but I was Earth King Chan's mentor." This was the first thing he has ever told Kiaree about himself. He has only ever talked about earth bending. "I guess I'm just handling his disappearance on a little more personal level."

"Really?" Kiaree asks, happy to be forming some sort of bond with her teacher. "I didn't know he was an earth bender."

"He's not," Haru responds, which confuses Kiaree. "I was his mentor on how to act like the perfect prince. I was with him everyday…" Haru trails off, and looks like he is thinking back on an old memory.

"That's amazing, how you got chosen to be his mentor and all," Kiaree says. She sits on one of the couches and Haru does the same.

"Well, the main reason King Usung, may he rest in peace," Haru interjects and Kiaree bows her head in respect, " chose me was because I was his cousin." Kiaree stares wide mouthed at Master Haru.

"So, this means your royalty?" questions and Master Haru shrugs a yes. She knew her teacher was special but not royalty. "Wait, if the king is missing and he doesn't have any other immediate family, doesn't that mean you are in line to take his place as king while he is gone?" It's unfortunate that King Chan never had kids or a wife of his own, but he is one of the most beloved Earth Kings.

"No, I wont be taking over King Chan's place."

"But… why not?"

Haru sighs. "I made a request to Usung than Chan never know I am related to him, technically his first cousin once removed." He sees Kiaree's confused look and adds, "I don't want the responsibility of ruling a palace. The next person to take the throne is Lee, Chan's grand general and he will do just fine. He has always been a born leader, oh so I've heard. I haven't had the pleasure of meeting him personally."

Kiaree thinks about it for a second. "Yah," she agrees, "I wouldn't want a responsibility that big either."

Haru laughs. "Avatar Kiaree," he smirks, "you already have one."

Soon Kiaree finds Meg in the palace courtyard, playing with Kisu.

"There you are!" Meg exclaims. "Have a good heart to heart with good ole pal Haru?"

"_Haha_ very funny," Kiaree sneers and tells her she has the day to do whatever. "While its still light out, I'm going to get some earth bending practice in with him."

"I have a feeling I'm going to need to find an exploring buddy while you are always off earth bending," Meg mumbles. Kiaree looks at the floor. "Oh well!" Meg rebounds. "You know, one of the cleaning servant boys at our place was kind of cute. I think I'll go see what he's up to," Meg winks. "Go knock some rocks together!" Kiaree laughs as her friend runs and does a front handspring through the gate out of the courtyard. Just for fun, Kiaree tries one too. She loves the feeling of dancing and doing tricks again. Kiaree then heads to a specially laid out training yard with Kisu gliding behind her. She could tell Kisu may start breathing fire soon because recently he has started to involuntarily coughed puffs of smoke. This would definitely become a problem.

In no time at all Kiaree has found her way to the training yard. _"Maybe those water benders improved my sense of direction,"_ Kiaree jokes to herself as Master Haru enters the yard.

"I'm _finally_ here for my training," Kiaree smiles. Haru begins the lesson immediately. They start with basic earth bending forms and move into more difficult styles as the afternoon fades into night.

After accomplishing more than expected, Kiaree is escorted home and given a map to the city. "In case you get lost again," Song, their city guide, giggles, handing it to her.

"Thanks," Kiaree says in a sort of drawn out kind of way, then, not knowing what to do, bows and walks inside with Kisu. Meg is seated at a small floor table in the center of the main room. She is kneeling on a green mat and pouring tea from a steaming kettle into two china cups.

"I didn't know you could make tea," Kiaree comments, taking a small piece of meat out of the house's cold closet and dropping it on a plate for Kisu to eat. He coughs up a small puff of smoke, and then starts tearing into the meat.

"I can't," Meg laughs. "I didn't find the cleaning boy so I went on a "tour" with Song and she showed me around Ba Sing Se. One of our last stops was the Jasmine Dragon, so I picked up some tea."

"Oh, yeah, I've heard of that place," Kiaree mentions, joining Meg at the floor table. She takes a sip of her tea and sighs. _Ginseng_. Her mother's favorite tea. Mai loved experimenting with new teas and it makes Kiaree home sick.

"Thanks Meg, this is just what I need," Kiaree says. "It's been a pretty stressful day."

Meg laughs. "Yah, it's not every day that you get attacked by muggers, go into the avatar state, find out the king has been kidnapped, _and_ have earth bending training. But who knows, this may be ordinary in the daily life of Avatar Kiaree."

Kiaree laughs too. "Yep, totally normal." The girls finish their tea and prepare for sleep. Meg shows Kiaree a few of the _authentic_ Ba Sing Se souvenirs she bought sight seeing with Song. As Meg turns off their automatic candle lights, Kiaree sees the tiniest bit of fire escape Kisu mouth as he growls at an invisible creature.

"Please don't burn the house down," Kiaree thinks as she drifts into a deep slumber.


	5. A Change in Scenery

Chapter 5: A Change In Scenery

"_Kisu, stop breathing in my face," Kiaree mumbles, her eyes closed. Kisu's breath smells faintly of smoke and it starts to grow stronger. Kiaree reaches a hand out blindly to push her small dragon away, but comes in contact with something much larger than Kisu. Kiaree's eyes fly open and are met by a raging fire quickly engulfing the house. A huge tail is lying across her bed and leads all the way out of the door._

_ "Meg!" Kiaree exclaims, calling out to her friend, but Meg is nowhere to be seen. The flames lick at her and she quickly jumps out of bed and dashes for the door, shooting fire out of her path with her own flames. When this proves ineffective, Kiaree earth bends a huge slab of the floor into the air and onto the flames in front of her in an attempt to put them out. It doesn't have the desired affect, only making the flames shoot out from under the floor towards her._

_ Kiaree shrieks, covering her face with her arms as she falls backwards to avoid the flames. She then notices the giant tail still next to her, leading to the door. Kiaree leaps onto it, wrapping her arms and legs around the gigantic tail. She coughs, and covers her mouth with her shirt to avoid breathing in too much smoke. Kiaree reaches down and picks up a nearby plate, smashing it into the tail with all her might. Kiaree hears a roar and the tail is pulled out of the house, past the fiery grip of the flames. She gasps as she is brought face to face with a full sized dragon, wrapping completely aground the burning house twice. _

_ "Kisu?" Kiaree yells over the roar of the fire below. The dragon shoots a breath of fire into the air. The brilliant flame is swirled with colors Kiaree had never seen before, magically twisting into the air then disappearing into heat. Kiaree's heart leaps as she is both awed and terrified at the same time. _

_ With Kiaree still gripping his tail, Kisu bows his head low, then leaps upward into the air, flying high above Ba Sing Se and past the clouds. Midair, he turns and dives straight back to the earth, towards their burning home._

_ "Kisu! Kisu stop!" Kiaree shrieks as he nears the house. Kiaree can already feel the heat of the fire below as they near. In a last attempt to stop her dragon Kiaree once again yells, "STOP!" right as they plunge into the fire._

Kiaree sits straight up in bed, waking from her dream. For a minute, she can only see white and panics, then realizes that the cover is over her head and pulls it off. The cold night air feels like pricks on her skin and Kiaree notices that she is sweating. Still panting, the terrified avatar searches the dark room for Kisu. She stumbles into him lying on the floor by his food bowl, bones from his previous meal still lying at the bottom.

"Kisu?" Kiaree whispers, waving her arms blindly near the floor. She gasps as he flies to her shoulder and curls around her neck. He lets out a small noise, almost like a purr, and Kiaree sighs. "Don't grow up too fast Kisu," she murmurs and walks back to her bed. Kiaree picks Kisu off her neck and notices how long he is. Kisu has gotten to be at least six feet long. He wiggles in her arms, trying to move into a comfortable position. Kiaree lets him go and he once again flies to her shoulders. Kiaree grunts at his weight, her previous adrenaline rush gone. She yawns and lies back down on her bed. Before her head hits the pillow, Kisu flies out from under Kiaree and takes a position stretched out next to her on the bed. Kiaree strokes his head, and closes her eyes, trying to get as much sleep as she can in the remaining hours of the night.

Early the next morning, Kiaree enters the designated training area where Haru advised her to meet him. Looking around the numerous rocks and training obstacles, she see's that her teacher hasn't arrived yet, and takes a meditating position on the ground. The sun is just rising, spreading an orange glow over the rocks in front of her, their shadows leaving her in the cold. Kiaree sighs, pushing her fists together and closing her eyes. Not really knowing how to meditate, Kiaree focuses on the growing warmth on her face as the sun rises. After a bit, her whole body is engulfed in its warmth. But the heat of the sun reminds Kiaree of her dream and the faint yellow glow that penetrates through her eyelids turns into a raging fire engulfing her.

"Kiaree." She gasps, opening her eyes to find herself once again in the shade. She looks up, staring right in the face of her earth bending master.

"Master Haru, you're late," Kiaree smirks, standing up and bowing to Haru.

"I think that makes us even then," Haru smiles, then gets serious. "After today's lesson, we will be taking an… extended vacation from training."

"What do you mean? We just started training back up."

"I know," Master Haru sighs. "I hate to be the first to tell you this, but, you and the Kyoshi warrior," Master Haru _still_ hadn't taken it upon himself to learn Meg's name, "will be leaving Ba Sing Se."

Kiaree stares at her sifu, then stammers, "But… but we just got to Ba Sing Se. Is it because the King is missing? Because King Chan has been missing for a week now and if we had to leave because of him we should have left a week ago before Meg and I got settled in and how will I learn earth bending if I'm leaving and are you…" she rushes. Haru holds up his hand to silence her and Kiaree takes a few moments to catch her breath.

"To answer your _many_ question, no it's not because of King Chan, well not completely. And I'm not coming with you, so your training will be on hold… again," Master Haru murmurs.

"Then why am I leaving?"

Haru sighs. Kiaree notices a tired look in his sad eyes and fears the worst. "It seems, and in _such convenient_ timing, Chief Aaron of the Southern Water Tribe has disappeared, along with King Chan. The Water Tribe warriors have confirmed it was a kidnapping and the White Lotus are heading there soon to determine if the kidnapping is related to ours here in Ba Sing Se. The White Lotus are leaving…"

"Which means I'm leaving," Kiaree confirms, and then sighs.

"I'm sorry. But let's not waste anymore time of our last training session until you return," Master Haru says, then begins Kiaree earth bending lessons for the day.

After around five hours of sufficient earth bending forms and drills, Master Haru informs Kiaree that she should go to her house to start packing.

"I will be sure to be there when you leave," Haru says and Kiaree smiles. "To give you instructions on drills and forms to practice while you are gone." Kiaree smirks at her teacher, knowing he was trying not to show his emotions on purpose. She bows to Master Haru, and turns to leave the training arena.

"Kiaree!" Someone calls behind her, right after Kiaree walks out of the palace gate. She turns to see Jeong walking to her with his normal happy go lucky smile on his face. Kiaree sighs, not really in the mood to pretend that "_everything is fine and no Meg and I don't need anything else and Ba Sing Se is great and so is earth bending training"_ while wearing a fake overly happy smile to please Jeong.

"I came to tell you so bad news," Jeong starts, his smile fading.

"I know," Kiaree interrupts. "I know about Chief Aaron and us leaving."

Jeong looks shocked for a second, and then laughs a somewhat fake laugh. "Of course you do! You're the Avatar! Do you need help packing? I can send Song over right away to help you."

"No, thank you. Meg and I can manage."

"Well, if you change your mind, just call me. Remember… only the best for our Avatar!" Jeong pronounces.

_"Our avatar?"_ Kiaree thinks as she smiles to Jeong and walks home. Sure, Kiaree tries to be nice to everyone, but some people were just _overly_ friendly. And sometimes Jeong kind of freaks her out. _"He's just trying to be there for me. It's his job."_

Kiaree enters her home to find a _still _sleeping Meg sprawled out over her bed and Kisu flying in and out of every hole he can find between furniture and the walls. Every opening he could fit through, that is. Occasionally, in his rapid flying, Kisu would get the largest part of his back stuck between two chairs or the wall and thrash around before freeing himself. Eventually, he glides under Kiaree's bed and can't manage to get himself back out. Kiaree walks over to Kisu from her spot in the threshold and pulls him hard out from under the bed.

"You aren't a little baby anymore," Kiaree coos, bundling the long Kisu in her arms and scratching his head. "You don't realize how big you are."

"Could you keep it down," Meg mumbles from her bed. "Some of us need our sleep."

"Meg, it's 12 o'clock. Get your lazy ass out of bed," she jokes. "And I have some… news."

"Oh, great. 'News' from the Avatar isn't always a good thing," Meg smirks as she sits up and stretches, swinging her legs over the side of the lavish earth kingdom bed.

Kiaree sighs. "We have to leave. We are going to the Southern Water Tribe because Chief Aaron has been kidnapped and that's where the White Lotus is heading, so I'm going to go pack!" With that, Kiaree strides to another room, leaving Meg stunned behind her. Kiaree tried to make it sound cheery and not so bad, but is afraid she only scarred Meg. Kiaree laughs and starts packing. Eventually Meg joins in, rolling her eyes at Kiaree every time she gets the chance. After packing, the girls spend the rest of the day pretending to be royalty in the Earth Kingdom palace, getting foot rubs and palanquin rides through the city.

Trying to enjoy her last day in Ba Sing Se, Kiaree even agrees to Meg to play some earth bending tricks on the people in the upper ring market. Not wanting to scare the populace of Ba Sing Se with a dragon, Kiaree asks the royal animal attendant to care for Kisu for the day. He is used to dealing with cat owls, antler bunnies, sparrowkeets, and the occasional turtle duck, and when Kiaree and Meg return home that evening, the ends of his robes are burned and the house is a mess with Kisu flying all about. Seeing Kiaree, the animal attendant rushes towards her, but shrieks and ducks as Kisu flies over his head, beating him to Kiaree.

"You're animal is crazy!" He yells rushing out the door and down the street. Meg and Kiaree laugh, closing the door and hustling inside. Exhausted, the two collapse on their beds, with Kisu lying on top of Kiaree.

"Kiaree?" Meg asks from her side of the room.

"Hm?" she mumbles, her face buried in a pillow.

"I think I'm gonna miss Ba Sing Se," Meg sighs, pulling blankets around her.

"Me too," Kiaree agrees, then closes her eyes and prays to the Spirits that she won't have another nightmare.

The next morning, Song arrives bright and early to fetch the avatar and her friend.

_"Wake up, wake up! Time to leave! Get your bags," _Song sings opening their door, then "politely" waiting outside.

"Isn't it ironic how Song likes to sing?" Meg asks as Kiaree and her take their bags outside with song. Kiaree laughs and the three begin the short walk to the closest monorail station, with Kisu flying loops behind them

"You do have a traveling cage for him, right?" Song laughs nervously, obviously not wanting to demand that the avatar's animal be caged.

"Actually, I was thinking that we just get a separate monorail that no civilians are on so Kisu can ride cage free. He's too big to fit in a cage," Kiaree suggests and Song sighs nervously. After arriving at the station and _finally_ getting Kisu onto a monorail, the four speed by Ba Sing Se's three classes.

"The Order of the White Lotus are going to meet you at E.K. Ferry Port," Song says after exiting the Upper Ring. "From there everyone traveling with you will take a private ferry to the E.K. Ferry Port in Chameleon Bay, where a boat is waiting to take you to the Southern Water Tribe."

Meg looks out the window and sighs at the quickly disappearing Ba Sing Se. Kiaree feels the same way as her Kyoshi Warrior friend and plays with Kisu for the remaining monorail ride. After finally exiting the giant city, the group arrives at the port. Waiting near a docked ferry is Jeong, Master Haru, Shang, Ming, and two people she doesn't recognize. Jeong is wearing his traditional fire nation White Lotus robes, and Master Haru and Shang are dressed in green earth kingdom robes, but Shang's has the symbol the White Lotus imprinted on the back. Ming has on a gray kimono with hints of blue sewn into it and the man and woman Kiaree hasn't met are dressed in blue Water Tribe robe and kimono. The woman has the imprint of the White Lotus on her back.

"Hello, I'm Oma," the woman says, introducing herself to Kiaree and Meg. "It's a pleasure to meet you. I am a water bending member of the White Lotus and this is Nile. He traveled with me from the Southern Water Tribe." The two bow to Kiaree and Meg and the girls bow back. Kiaree walks up to Master Haru and gives him a quick hug goodbye.

The surprised earth bender quickly recovers, blushes, and grunts, "Make sure to practice your forms. And don't forget to review your fire bending from time to time."

Kiaree smiles. "Thank you Master Haru. For everything." She bows to her master and he smiles, giving her a small bow back.

"Let's go Kiaree," Shang calls, boarding the ferry.

"Time to head to the Southern Water Tribe!" Jeong exclaims from atop the ferryboat, spreading his arms wide over the edge as if he is saying goodbye to Ba Sing Se. Kiaree and Haru raise their eyebrows at each other andshe stifles a giggle over how weird Jeong can be at times. Kiaree finds Meg and the two board the boat. Kisu is already exploring the small ferry, scaring the few boat workers. As the ferry leaves the port, Kiaree waves goodbye to Master Haru and Song, the two left on shore.

After switching to a much larger boat at the E.K. Ferry Port in Chameleon Bay, the group heads down around the Earth Kingdom and past Kyoshi Island and Whale Tale island. From there the boat takes Kiaree in between the islands holding the Patola Mountain Range and finally into the Bay concealing the Southern Water Tribe.


	6. Southern Water Tribe

Chapter 6: The Southern Water Tribe

With their boat securely docked at one of the now many ports, Kiaree rushes down the boardwalk and into the ankle deep snow of the Southern Water Tribe. She gasps, feeling the cold fluff grip her ankles and, shivers.

"Oh my Spirits," Meg breaths, walking next to her.

"It's beautiful," Kiaree agrees, taking in the lights shinning from in between the almost ever-present snow clouds. The Southern Water Tribe has grown a lot from the pictures Kiaree had seen in her school textbooks. The once small, snow-fort-encased village is now teeming with life. It's almost as if the small village multiplied, then grew to have small villages blooming around it, each protected by it's own snow/ice wall. Each small village has a large igloo in the center, the biggest being in the main village. Altogether, there are around five villages making up the Southern Water Tribe. Approaching one of the snow walls, Kiaree notices the intricate design of the gates blocking out unwelcomed creatures of the arctic.

"Right this way avatar," Nile says, with Oma, Shang, Ming, Jeong, and Kisu following him into the main gate of the center village. Kiaree and Meg follow the group through the wall and face the bustling Southern Water Tribe. Before either girl has a chance to breathe, they are whisked away to their own, shared hut and asked not to leave by Jeong.

"This is totally boring," Meg mumbles from her traditional water tribe cot. "We're in the southern water tribe! We should be out exploring, or at least getting some warmer clothes."

"I think the Order has that taken care of," Kiaree answers, opening a wooden chest to find it filled with blue kimonos and water tribe coats.

Meg joins her and picks up a hooded coat. "We could always sneak out," Meg says with a grin on her face. "It's not like they will recognize us with one of these things on."

"But what about Kisu?" Kiaree asks, motioning to her dragon that lay miserably on a rug covering the hardened snow floor. "Poor thing, he hates this cold weather. And I'm worried he's going to melt the igloo."

"Gosh we just cause trouble everywhere we go, don't we?" Meg laughs.

"Guess we're stuck here." Kiaree begins to, once again, unpack her few belongings that the Order of the White Lotus had brought to her hut. Their hut was considerably small, compared to their last home in Ba Sing Se. It had traditional Water Tribe interior, with fur hanging from the walls and various patterned blankets covering most of the snow. The only furniture are two cots, a wooden chest, a small table, a blue changing screen, and three floor chairs surrounding the table. Kiaree places Kisu's metal food bowl near the entrance, which is covered by a long fur pelt that brushes against the snow floor.

Surprisingly, Oma walks into the hut, causing Meg to ump off of her cot.

"I thought you ladies might want to see the Southern Water Tribe, instead of stay in a hut. You don't learn much that way, do you?" Oma asks, smiling and motioning the girls to follow her.

"Actually, I'm kind of hungry," Meg yawns. "And tired. Traveling wears me out. You go ahead, Kiaree. I'll stay with Kisu."

"You sure?" Kiaree asks, petting Kisu goodbye. Meg nods. Kiaree grabs a blue, hooded coat and heads out after Oma. Once again Kiaree faces the largest village in the Southern Water Tribe, though not nearly the size of the Northern. Huts similar to hers surround the perimeter of the village, pressing up against the wall. Towards the back are two watchtowers facing into the uncharted arctic. Near the towers, a large building sits towards the edge of the village, away from most of the shops and homes. Oma leads her past the markets and shops, back toward those towers. The familiar sounds of a bustling market fade as guard water bends the ice door aside for Oma and Kiaree to enter.

"This is one of the two watch towers Water Tribe Warriors like Nile use to see past the villages and out to the ocean. From here we can also see the compound," Oma tells Kiaree as they start up a spiraling staircase to the top.

"The compound?"

Ome nods. "It's where boys are sent to 'become men.' They train at the compound to become either warriors, water bending masters, or both."

"Do all boys go to the compound?" Kiaree asks, nearing the top of the long staircase.

"Not all," Oma replies. "You saw those men in the market. I doubt _they_ went." Kiaree laughs and studies Oma. She has silver hair cut into a short bob that points near her chin, but she doesn't look old. More like her hair is its natural color. She had faint wrinkles on her forehead and smile lines. Oma pushes aside a blue cloth blocking the platform from the stairs and Kiaree follows her inside.

"This is the Southern Water Tribe," Oma says, spreading her arm across the villages jutting out in front of her.

Kiaree gasps. There are smaller villages behind the biggest one that don't have a wall surrounding them, but are still protected by the two looming watchtowers. The arctic is beautiful, with its rolling snow covered hills. Over one hill, Kiaree can make out the top of the compound, with a long, stretched wall surrounding it. If she squinted, Kiaree could just make out what looks like blocks of ice and columns in the distance.

"What's that out there?" she asks, pointing to the shapes over a few hills.

"Construction. The council decided that we needed another watchtower to warn if anything was coming our way. They are concerned because of the recent attacks.

"Attacks?" Kiaree asks.

"The kidnapping," Oma answers solemnly. Kiaree nods and the two walk back down the snow tower.

After making their way back through the Southern Water Tribe, Oma leads Kiaree out of the main village and near one of the smaller ones. She hesitates at the gate, turning back to look at the avatar.

"I don't know if you want to see this village. Maybe we should just head to the next one…"

"What's wrong with this one?" Kiaree asks. Noticing the gate, she sees that it isn't as elaborate as the other. Actually, the tall gate barely has any design on it at all, where as the main village had _gold_ frozen into its base.

"This is one of the more… poor villages in the South Pole."

"Then why doesn't the main village give them money?"

"It doesn't work that way. The people here have to make their own money, or it could start something between the villages. We try to keep a balance of power in how we run the 'government' here. If we give money to this village, then the other two will want money and the gold value drops. This town would just end up being poor again and everything would be more expensive," Oma explains, allowing Kiaree to enter the smaller village. Kiaree ponders this as she walks into the city, then stops short in her tracks.

_This is what the southern water tribe looked like back in _Avatar Aang's_ time. How did this village end up like this? _Kiaree thinks, taking in the broken village. The huts aren't even huts, just tents with a brown material protecting the citizens from the snow. There is a good sized fire pit in the center of the tent's, and people were surrounding it.

"Is that their only fire pit?" Kiaree whispers to Oma, walking further into the village. She looks up to see royal water tribe guards manning the gate, and take in how far people try to stay from them.

"If they wanted to, I guess they could make their own fire pit," Oma answers.

"From what wood?"

Oma looks at Kiaree. "They aren't trapped in here. They are allowed to go out hunting and collecting." Kiaree looks at the ground, embarrassed for assuming. The two reach the single fire pit and out of pity for the poor citizens, Kiaree shoots flames into the dwindling fire. The bystanders near the fire cover their faces in fear, but most look at the growing fire in awe. A few smile their thanks to the avatar.

"I think it's best we leave now," Oma suggests, looking at a group of "thugs" gathered towards the back of the tiny village. The men are staring at the Avatar and her White Lotus guide. Kiaree sighs and follows the water bender out of the village. Oma explains that the other two villages are what you could call middle class and the main one is richest, somewhat royalty.

"It's where the Chief and his family live," Oma explains, then stops herself. "Or_, lived_."

She takes Kiaree back through the bustling village in the center of the Southern Water Tribe and up to a large igloo with towers on its rear. An ice gate surrounds the entrance and Kiaree and Oma pass two guards when entering. Each block on the igloo had a design on it. Some, the symbol for the water tribes, and others had snowflakes and snow-topped trees carved into the sides. When entering, Kiaree is in a small room with three hallways facing out in different directions. Oma leads her down the farthest on their left and the two enter what looks like a war meeting area.

Like most other water tribe rooms, there is a large fur pelt laid in the center of the dome shaped room. There are three intricately designed chairs placed in the back of the room, and a large table in the center. A group of people surrounds this table, studying whatever had been placed on top. Kiaree recognizes Jeong, Nile, Ming, and Shang among them, along with two men she has not met.

"Chief Beau," Oma says, striding forward with Kiaree trailing behind her.

"Please," the man says, holding up his hand. "My father is chief, and remains so."

"But while Chief Aaron is… gone, you are in line for chief," Oma answers, giving a slight bow to the new chief.

Beau bows back, then turns to Kiaree as Oma joins the people around the table.

"I'm Avatar Kiaree," she says, approaching the chief with an outstretched hand.

"I'm Beau," he says, taking her hand and shaking it. A woman walks into the meeting room from an unseen door with two kids trailing around her feet. "This is my wife, Princess Nari." Beau reaches out and guides Nari over to him. The children follow and the mother keeps a constant hand on a small girl.

"It's so nice to have you in the Southern Water Tribe," she says with a smile. _She has a heavy accent. Almost… fire nation?_ Kiaree ignores her thought, not wanting to be rude, and smiles back.

"Who are these two?" Kiaree asks, bending down so she is eye level with the children and smiles at them.

"I'm Oko," the small boy says, pointing his thumb to his chest. "And I'm six!" Kiaree laughs and gives his hand a small shake.

"Nice to meet you Oko."

"This is my sister, Launa. She's six too," Oko says, grabbing the small girl's arm and putting her in front of Kiaree.

"Oko," Nari scolds. "Don't be so ruff with her." Princess Nari puts a hand on Launa's shoulder and guides the girl back towards her mother. Kiaree looks closer at the tiny water tribe girl. She has dulled blue eyes that don't seem to focus on anything. Her black hair matches her father's hair, and is in a short braid off to her side. Launa's hand slowly finds her mother's and holds tight. Kiaree stands back up.

"Launa was born blind," Chief Aaron answers Kiaree's unspoken question.

She looks down at the blind girl, a wave of sympathy washing over her. Jeong coughs, interrupting her thoughts. He motions for Kiaree, and she waves a goodbye to the boy and walks to Jeong. He takes her by the shoulder and turns her to face another unfamiliar face.

"This is Warron. He's Chief Aaron's nephew," Jeong introduces the two. Kiaree shakes Warron's outstretched hand, and looks up into his cyan eyes. Kiaree takes in his features. He's handsome, no doubt, but she sees almost a roughness behind it.

Warron releases Kiaree's hand and says, "And Beau's cousin."

"Almost like my little brother," Beau adds, walking over and ruffling Warron's dark brown hair. Oma looks over and Kiaree can see the disapproval in her eyes as she takes in the two "men."

Jeong leads Kiaree to the table everyone was surrounding and shows her what the group is studying, pointing at different papers. Sprawled across the table are police reports and photographs taken from the night Chief Aaron was kidnapped. There are maps of his chamber and notes on all the people he made contact with that day.

"This is mainly investigative work," Jeong says, pulling Kiaree from the crowd. "The avatar isn't needed in any of this. You may head to you're hut if you please."

"Actually," Kiaree starts, "I'd kind of like to meet my water bending teacher. I want to know when I'll start my training."

On hearing this, Shang turns from his conversation with Ming and laughs, "Oh, Kiaree, you haven't mastered earth bending yet! You can't possibly believe you'll start mastering a new element?"

Jeong nods in agreement and continues, "No, Master Haru will finish you're earth bending lesson, next you will learn air bending, and _then _you may begin water bending."

"If I'm not going to learn, why did I travel with you to the South Pole instead of train for earth bending in Ba Sing Se?" Kiaree protests, maybe a little to loudly.

Jeong notices a few of the members of the White Lotus have started to turn heads at their conversation and Jeong, with a fake smile, answers nicely, "Because, Avatar, we can't let you be off on your own! Our job is to protect you."

Warron suddenly interjects and states, "This is a war meeting room and we have _important _things to worry about here. So do you think you could take it outside?" Jeong bows to Warron and starts to pull Kiaree towards the hallway. Kiaree shakes off his arm, tired of being pulled around the place. Before exiting the room, she turns around and makes a mocking face to Warron, causing his frown to deepen.

_What's up his ass? _Kiaree thinks, allowing Jeong to take her into the room she entered from. They stop there and Jeong sighs.

"How old is that guy? He acts like _he's_ in charge."

"Oh, Prince Warron?" Jeong asks. "Well, I suppose he's not much older than you are Avatar Kiaree. Probably 16? 17? And, technically, he is in charge."

_My age… figures_ Kiaree thinks, following Jeong back into the market and toward her and Meg's hut.

Jeong leaves Kiaree at her hut, advising her not to fire bend while inside and to keep control of her dragon while at the South Pole. She watches as Jeong leaves and a cart rumbles past her headed to the market. It's filled with watermelon and pulled by a polar bear dog. Kiaree quickly grabs a melon and strides in the hut to find Meg practicing some of her Kyoshi Warrior skills.

"Hey," Meg says, punching the air then stepping back to dodge an invisible hit.

"I got food," Kiaree holds the melon up. Meg walks to her trunk and pulls out a small pocketknife. Cutting the watermelon in half, Meg hands one half to Kiaree and bites into hers.

"So I met the new chief and the _high and mighty prince_," Kiaree mocks Warron's face and Meg laughs.

"Does he think he's all that or something? Because the prince sure rubbed you the wrong way."

"No, he just kind of seems like a jerk," Kiaree pulls a pink piece of watermelon from its hold on the green skin and plops in into her mouth.

"Where did you get the food?" Meg asks, lying out on her bed.

"I kind of just took it," Kiaree laughs, sitting on a floor chair and eating more melon.

"The avatar stealing? That won't go over well with the rest of the world," Meg smirks and Kiaree laughs. She looks around some, then Kiaree stands up.

"Um, Meg?"

"Yah…"

"Where's Kisu?"

Meg sits up and looks around the small room. She looks to the poorly covered door, then rubs the back of her head. "He was here when I started practicing…"

"Meg!" Kiaree yells, moving a heavy fur pelt covering the only window and peering outside.

"Kiaree, you let Kisu outside all the time in Ba Sing Se, he's fine," Meg says nonchalantly, lying back down.

"He's a _fire breathing_ dragon in a town made completely from _snow and ice_. This is totally different!" she exclaims, throwing Meg a blue, hooded coat and pulling her out into the snow. Kiaree looks around, seeing no traces of her dragon.

"Over here!" Meg calls and Kiaree runs to her. Meg is standing near a wooden post with two buffalo yaks tied by their harnesses. "Let's borrow one of these to look for him. Who knows how far Kisu could have flown," Meg suggests. Kiaree sighs, not wanting to take the animal without permission, but nods and the girls climb onto the buffalo yak's back. Meg unties it, and the two ride through the busy village of the Southern Water Tribe, still eating her watermelon.

Once reaching more huts instead of shops, Kiaree sees a flash of red and steers the animal behind a few of the huts. Once rounding a corner, the two are behind the big igloo with towers looking over their heads. And there stands Warron and Nile, a dragon curled around both men's feet.

"Kisu!" Kiaree calls, hopping of their borrowed animal and allowing the dragon to lie across her shoulders. The rest of him bundles in her arms, as he is now too big to fit on her shoulder. Meg guides the buffalo yak to where Kiaree is standing, facing the two South Pole men.

"So, so I'm guessing that's, that's you're dragon?" Nile asks, sounding a little petrified.

"Yes, I'm sorry," Kiaree apologizes. "He got out and was probably scared because of all the commotion. Did he frighten you?" Meg snickers beside her.

"No! No," Nile replies, smoothing out his warrior robe. Kiaree turns to Warron and bows as best she can with a dragon on her. She nods for Meg to do the same and Warron motions for them to stop.

"Just keep your dragon under control from now on," he says. "You may go."

Meg gasps a little and remarks, "We may go wherever we please."

"Meg," Kiaree whispers, afraid of what her warrior friend might get herself into.

"Warrior Nile and I were talking. It's kind of private. That's all I meant," Warron answers, trying to sound nicer. Just then, a street merchant marches up to the four, pointing at Meg.

"Robbers! They stole my buffalo yak!" the man yells. Nile sighs and looks questioningly at the girls. A hint of a smile play of Warron's face.

"We didn't steal it, the avatar just needed to borrow your animal for a bit. It's an honor to have her ride it," Meg states proudly, obviously not fooling the merchant. He stares and Meg, then notices the watermelon still in her hand.

"That's my fruit too! I bet she also stole that!" he exclaims. Kiaree sighs.

"Ok, ok, look. We're sorry. You can have you're buffalo yak back, we will pay for the fruit, and take our dragon. Everyone happy?" she asks, setting Kisu down and pulling a copper piece out of her pocket.

"Earth kingdom money?" the merchant scoffs. "You may be the avatar, but I don't except foreign currency from anyone!"

Warron takes a water tribe coin out of his pocket and hands it over to the man. "Here," he says. "Now you got your money and animal. Anything else?" The man shakes his head and takes the reins from Meg. He leaves and Meg and Kiaree start to head out.

"Thanks for finding my dragon!" Kiaree calls over her shoulder as the two scurry away. Warron shakes his head, but Kiaree can almost see him laughing as the two girls chase Kisu home..

**THANKS FOR READING! Sorry I'm slow at posting chapters, but it would be helpful if people review and tell me what they think! REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW please! haha hopefully I'll have chapter seven up soon. :)**


End file.
